New Jersey Failure to Hire Lawyer
Employment discrimination does not just affect individuals who have lost their jobs or faced abuse in their current workplaces. It also impacts people looking for work. Indeed, there are many cases of illegal discrimination during the hiring process itself.
If an employer has refused to hire you based on a legally protected characteristic, such as your race, disability, or even marital status, you have the right to seek monetary damages under federal and state civil rights laws. The experienced New Jersey failure to hire lawyers at Poulos LoPiccolo PC can provide you with invaluable guidance in this area. We represent individuals such as yourself who have been denied access to gainful employment for illegal reasons.
Employers Cannot Refuse to Hire You Based on a Protected Characteristic
In general, an employer is free to hire whom they wish. But various laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) prohibit employers from basing their hiring decisions on certain protected characteristics. This means that an employer may not refuse to hire a job applicant based on any or all of the following:
- race, color, or national origin;
- religious beliefs or creed;
- sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression;
- disability (or perceived disability);
- marital status;
- age;
- genetic information, genetic traits, or refusal to submit to genetic testing as a condition of employment; and
- pregnancy or the fact an applicant is breastfeeding a child.
Of course, employers are often savvy enough to avoid outright saying their refusal to hire is based on a discriminatory motive. This is why it is critical to work with an attorney who has experience investigating and building refusal to hire cases. In most cases, we find employers use a legal-sounding pretext as a cover for a discriminatory purpose.
If you do have a case, the first step is often to file a formal complaint with either the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights. These agencies have the legal power to further investigate and bring legal charges against an employer for discriminatory failure to hire. If either agency decides not to take direct action, the job applicant can then file their own civil lawsuit and seek to recover damages.
Damages in failure to hire cases can include placement in the job the applicant was seeking or the back and pay and benefits they would have received had they been hired. A court may also award additional compensatory and punitive damages for intentional discrimination and to deter future wrongdoing.
Employment Lawyers Serving Ocean, Monmouth & Middlesex County
There are many valid reasons why an employer may choose not to hire you. But if you suspect their reasons were merely a cover for a discriminatory motive, you should not hesitate to stand up for yourself. If you need to speak with a skilled New Jersey refusal to hire lawyer, contact Poulos LoPiccolo PC today to schedule an initial consultation.
